A saddle is typically manufactured using a rigid internal saddle frame, which is also known as a saddletree. A typical saddletree is illustrated in FIG. 1. The saddletree is made of rigid material that may comprise wood, laminated wood, fibreglass, rigid plastics material and the like. The saddletree typically has a length of between 50-90 cm and a width of between 30-60 cm although this can vary. The tree has a rear cantle portion (see reference numeral 11 FIG. 1), a front gullet portion (reference numeral 12 FIG. 1) and a pair of side rails (13, 14 FIG. 1). A strong steel stirrup bar (15) is fixed to the front portion of the saddletree and is immovable with respect to the saddletree. The stirrup bar illustrated in FIG. 1 is typical for an Australian saddle, and the stirrup bar is made such that the stirrup leather can be releasably attached to the stirrup bar. For an American western saddle, the stirrup bar is in the form of a closed loop, which means that the stirrup leather cannot be released from the stirrup bar.
In use, a stirrup is attached to each stirrup bar. The stirrups function to hold and support a rider's foot. If the rider stands-up the entire weight of the stirrups, and therefore the stirrup bar supports the rider. This creates quite large stresses on the stirrup leather that are transferred to the stirrup bar. If the direction of the stress is at an angle to the stirrup bar, there is a possibility of damage to the stirrup bar, and/or damage to the saddletree.
Stirrup bars are known that allow the stirrup to swing inwardly and outwardly relative to the saddle. Sometimes a loose fit of the stirrup leather to the bar is sufficient; other times the stirrup bar can contain a bush or sleeve to allow the leather to swing inwardly and outwardly relative to the saddle. It is also known to provide some lateral adjustment of the stirrup leather relative to the bar (i.e. allowing the leather to be spaced further away or nearer to the rider's legs).
The present invention is directed to a stirrup bar assembly that has a member which can rotate and which can reduce stress on the leather strap that is attached to the stirrup bar. In one form, this can be achieved by having the stirrup leather attached to the member which can rotate about an axis which is transverse to the length of the saddle to reduce stress on the stirrup leather, and/or the stirrup bar and therefore to the saddle tree.